


You Could Have Ordered Yourself, Kid

by orphan_account



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: French-Speaking Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin), Language Barrier, eren makes a fool of himself, waiter!levi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-21
Updated: 2014-12-21
Packaged: 2018-03-02 17:25:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,065
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2820260
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Summary: Eren never liked learning languages. His family didn't approve of that.<br/>The Jaeger family is on vacation in Paris, and while they dine in style at a five-star French restaurant, it's up to Eren to order his own food in none other than French, a language in which he can barely say hello, and waiter Levi finds it amusing as hell. He doesn't plan on telling Eren he speaks English.</p>
            </blockquote>





	You Could Have Ordered Yourself, Kid

**Author's Note:**

> this is my ereri secret santa for shonenaifreak94 on tumblr!

"Mom, I have no idea what any of this even is. I can barely even work out the easy words." Eren whispered, slightly panicked at his inability to speak even the slightest bit of the language widely known as the Language of Love. Unfortunately, it wasn't all that loving when you were trying to order a croque madame without even knowing what a croque madame is. The boy nervously tightened his tie, forgetting his own strength as he nearly ended up choking himself in the middle of the civilized environment which earned him a few nasty stares. He caught a condescending expression from his mother, who didn't even bother to look up from her menu to silently scold him for not knowing what he needed to know.

"Si tu avais pratiqué ton français comme ta sœur, nous n’aurions pas ce problème du tout," she sighed, making her son want to scream because she knew he couldn't understand a word she was saying. Eren desperately scanned the menu, looking for something he might be the slightest bit familiar with, but to no avail, there wasn't a single word in the selection that he could read. He begged Mikasa for help, but she was unable to be of any assistance as their father stopped the girl from telling him what everything was. He was in a panic as he saw the waiter approach their booth and, against his better judgement, randomly selected something called "ratatouille." Ah, wait, that sounded familiar. He smiled to himself and figured he'd live.

"Bonjour, mon nom est Lévi. Je serai votre serveur aujourd'hui. Êtes-vous prêt à commander ou voulez-vous un moment?" He heard a monotonous, husky voice say from beside him and he looked up to find a rather attractive waiter standing there, short-statured with impeccable posture. His shoulder-length ebony undercut was pulled back in a small ponytail and his gray, tired eyes added a certain mystery to him that had they been in a different situation, Eren would be all over.

"Non, nous sommes prêts, je vous remercie," Carla responded politely with a small nod and delicate, humble smile. "Je voudrais les escargots, s'il vous plaît."

Levi nodded as he quickly scribbled down her order, next glancing at Grisha, who ordered foie gras, and Mikasa, who simply went for salade niçoise. He now looked at Eren, who was in a thorough panic as he racked his brain for the right words.

"Je... ah..." he tried to find the proper wording to speak to the waiter who was staring with slight annoyance now, while his parents looked at him expectantly. His mind went completely blank, he forgot what he even wanted.

"Mom, please, I have no idea what to say," he pleaded, only to get a head shake in response.

"Dad?"

"Désolé."

Eren sighed exasperatedly, glancing back up at Levi to see a hint of a smirk on his face now. What was so funny? He frantically looked at Mikasa, silently begging her for help, but all he got in return from the girl was a sympathetic glance. She paused, thought and hesitated all in one moment before looking at their mother and simply asking (in English):

"Mom, for the love of God could you just order for him? The idiot clearly didn't study at all so you're setting him up for this."

Eren was slightly offended at the insult, but relieved that she was trying to help him nonetheless. He heard a slight, stifled snicker come from next to him. Okay, now he was just confused. Did this guy speak English at all or what? No, if he did he probably would have interjected by now. Maybe it's just the situation, or he could possibly just be picking up on a few things.

"No, Mikasa. He should have studied his French with the rest of us, and I am one hundred percent willing to sit here all day until he can figure out what he needs to sa--"

Grisha sighed exasperatedly, placing his menu down in front of him, reaching over the table and gently snatching Eren's out of his hand. Why he didn't just use his own, he'll never understand.

"Okay. Ratatouille is mix of sauteed vegetables, including eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes, bell peppers and onions. This is the only thing I'm seeing that you'd like so do you want this?" He questioned his son, not rudely but vaguely bitter. Eren was taken aback by his father going against what his mother said, but ever so grateful nonetheless. He nodded quickly, murmuring a quiet "thank you" at his father before he watched him recite the order to Levi.

"Il voudrait la ratatouille, s'il vous plaît." He said quickly and fluently, as expected, since he had been studying the language the longest. He only received a still vaguely amused nod before the raven-haired waiter swiftly turned on his heel and made his way back to the kitchen. Eren let out a heavy, relieved sigh as he did so. Carla was glaring daggers at Grisha for not listening, but when he reasoned with her, saying that if he didn't then they'd be stuck there all day and possibly kicked out and the night would be ruined for /everyone/, she finally understood, but begrudgingly so. Eren spent the entirety of the time intervals between their ordering and receiving of their dishes apologizing profusely, promising his mother that he would study from now on, thanking his father for basically saving his ass back there. Of course, none of this did anything to help the overall embarrassment from the event.

The group all waited patiently for their food, with the brunet teen still apologizing every so often. It didn't take too long, but no one was impatient. Of course, food was considered an art in the country, so it would be understandable should it take longer than any American restaurant. You can't rush perfection.

The family received their food and began dining, thanking their waiter and nodding politely at the returned "à votre service."

After a moment, Eren felt a light tap on his shoulder. When he looked up, Levi was standing next to him, gesturing at the bottom of his name tag, which read "I SPEAK ENGLISH." His jaw nearly hit the floor as he processed the text.

"You could have ordered yourself, kid," he said slyly before heading back to the kitchen once again.

**Author's Note:**

> TRANSLATIONS-  
> Si tu avais pratiqué ton français comme ta sœur, nous n’aurions pas ce problème du tout.- "If you practiced your French like your sister, we wouldn't be having this problem at all."
> 
> Bonjour, mon nom est Lévi. Je serai votre serveur aujourd'hui. Êtes-vous prêt à commander ou voulez-vous un moment?- "Good afternoon, my name is Levi. I'll be your waitor for today. Are you ready to order or would you like a moment?"
> 
> Non, nous sommes prêts, je vous remercie.- "No, we're ready, thank you."
> 
> Je voudrais les escargots, s'il vous plaît.- "I would like the snails, please."
> 
> Je... ah....- "I... ah...."
> 
> Désolé.- "Sorry."
> 
> Il voudrait la ratatouille, s'il vous plaît.- "He would like the ratatouille, please."
> 
> À votre service.- a more formal version of "You're welcome," commonly heard from store clerks, various employees, and, of course, waiters.


End file.
